http://www.qcancer.org/ovary -- is designed for doctors but a simpler version could also be made available on the internet to raise awareness among the general public and to prompt women with risk factors or symptoms to seek advice from their doctor. It could also be integrated into GP clinical computer systems for use during the consultation or for identifying patients with combinations of symptoms needing further assessment.
Similar scores using QResearch® have already proven effective in previous research in identifying patients at most risk of developing lung cancer, gastro-esophageal cancer, bowel cancer, pancreatic cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, fractures, kidney disease and serious blood clots.
OC IN THE NEWS.................... An international clinical trial shows that treating ovarian cancer with the drug bevacizumab ("Avastin") delays the disease and may also improve survival. The findings in the New England Journal of Medicine report that the drug halted the cancer's return for two months overall but for women with the highest risk disease, the delay was five to six months and the findings also indicate a strong trend to improved overall survival, which is being analyzed until 2013.
The seven-year study began in 2004 and enrolled 1,528 women with ovarian cancer at 263 centres, including 20 in Canada. Avastin was added to chemotherapy treatment and given intravenously every three weeks for 12 months.
The drug blocks growth factors that promote new blood vessels formation in tumors, "starving" the cancer. It is not a cure, but has a proven track record in delaying disease progression in other types of cancer including colorectal, lung, breast, kidney and brain.
"This is the first new drug in ovarian cancer in 15 years to improve outcome and I believe it should be considered as a potential new standard of care," says Dr. Amit Oza of the Princess Margaret Cancer Program. "We now know that using Avastin in ovarian cancer for even this short time improves
outcomes. The next step is to determine if giving it for a longer period would be of even greater benefit."
Similar findings from a U.S. study are also reported in the journal. Oza says the major difference between the two studies is that the women in the American study were given twice as much Avastin. "So the question now is would half the dose for double the duration improve outcomes even more? This is an area to investigate further."
Women at risk of ovarian cancer are sometimes encouraged to get their ovaries removed. While ovary removal surgery can save a woman's life, it also may raise the risk of other health problems.
Women who had their ovaries removed before the age of 45 were more likely than those who still had ovaries to have low bone mineral density, an early sign of osteoporosis. Women who had their ovaries removed also had a higher risk of developing arthritis.
Talk to your doctor about the risks of ovary removal surgery.
There are certain genetic mutations that put women at risk for breast cancer and ovarian cancer. In order to reduce the risk of cancer and lengthen survival, women with these mutations are often encouraged to undergo oophorectomy (a surgery in which the ovaries are removed) before they reach age 40.
Yet, oophorectomy before age 45 has already been linked to osteoporosis. Considering the ovaries are a source of important hormones for women, the removal of these organs is likely to have a notable effect on a woman.
Anne Marie McCarthy, Sc.M., a doctoral candidate in epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and Kala Visvanathan, M.D., M.H.S., associate professor at Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, set out to see if bilateral oophorectormy (removal of both ovaries) had an effect on bone mineral density.
The researchers found that women who had both
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